Another great round of craft talks at Friday’s luncheon.  It simply amazes us that our members are so interesting after we know a little about them. Both red badgers gave craft talks from the heart and it was good to sit back and listen to what they had to say.

First up was Luther Tsinoglou; yes, he knows it is difficult to pronounce so he pronounces it “Smith”.  He was born in a little town (4500 people) in northern Greece and says that ever since the age of seven he had wanted to come to the United States.  One day in December 1976, his mother told him to make sure he stopped by the school principal’s office and pick up some paper work.  He found out that his family’s passage had been granted to the U.S. and on January 27, 1977, he immigrated here.  Although he spoke no English, he was elated to be here until he was told he would start school (4th  grade) within two days.  His mother taught him an introductory phrase in English, which he forgot the minute he entered the school grounds.  He quickly learned the language and made great progress.  His parents also sent him to Christian Bible School, which probably helped him to learn English.

His dad was his role model, teaching him everything from mechanics to construction, to real estate investing.  By the early 80’s his dad was buying, fixing, and selling homes and Luther learned early in life how to recognize a good deal.  Luther also learned about the restaurant business from his dad, and has gone on to purchase, then rehab, and eventually sell five restaurants.  He currently owns two Burger Shack locations in Pasadena and Monrovia.  Both offer drive thru or dine in service and have an extensive menu at reasonable rates.  Both are clean and with polite and competent staff, (I know, because I am a customer).  Luther also is a licensed real estate agent for Podley Real Estate in Sierra Madre.

You can tell that Luther admired his dad because he still remembers his dad taught him to practice the golden rule and to observe Sunday as a day of rest.  The love of his life is his wife Georgina and his daughter who Luther says is five years old with the mind of a twelve year old and the mouth of a twenty year old.

John Wilson, Executive Director, Boys and Girls Club,Monrovia

John was born right here in Arcadia at Methodist Hospital and raised in LaCanada.  He recalls a time when Pasadena reluctantly integrated its school district by busing students cross town, which prompted private schools to open in the area.  As an active member at Lake Avenue Church, John noticed that not many locals attended the youth ministry so he helped develop a program which would reach out to get kids active in an after school ministry.

This program was designed to serve the northwest area of Pasadena, specifically the “at risk” youth.  He developed more of a holistic approach to the ministry by mentoring and tutoring these kids, and it worked well.  John remembers a young man by the name of Earl who had lost his father to gang violence at eight years old.  Earl told John that when he lost his dad, he lost his best friend.  Earl started to hang out with gangs and other undesirables and was destined to be either a victim or a perpetrator.  He eventually got involved with the youth leadership program and turned his life around.  Earl graduated from high school, and has started at the University of New Mexico.  John became executive director of Lake Avenue Church Youth Ministry and served as a youth pastor for fifteen years.  He now is the executive director of the Boys and Girls Club of the Foothills, where he has been for two years.  He is married with three children, Kylie, Miles, and Daniel.  John coaches his kid’s baseball and two soccer teams and loves to surf and long board skateboard.

Both Luther and John have a passion for serving their communities and we welcome them to the greatest Rotary Club in the world.

Pat Dolphin